Paul Lynch

Council officials chasing the £10.25 million loaned to Northampton Town are set to “serve” the former owner’s father with civil proceedings - but his whereabouts remain a mystery.

Northampton Borough Council has confirmed it has ben unable to track down former stock broker Anthony Cardoza, dad of previous chairman David Cardoza, in an ongoing lawsuit.

The authority is trying to recover the money it loaned to the Cobblers to develop its stadium when David and Anthony owned the club through 2013 and 2014.

Anthony Cardoza is named in the civil proceedings, but orders need to be obtained to serve people domiciled oversees.

But at a High Court hearing on Friday, it emerged the council had been unable to locate a permanent address for the former owner, who is now believed to be living in France.

A spokesperson for the borough council said: “We have been trying to locate Anthony Cardoza, who we need to serve legal papers on.

“Despite our efforts and the efforts of our solicitor we have not been able to locate the whereabouts of Anthony Cardoza so at the hearing in Birmingham on Friday, we asked for and were given permission to serve legal papers on him at the address of his solicitors, Rix and Kay, in Surrey.”

At a court hearing on Friday it emerged Anthony Cardoza’s only listed address was on Companies House - that of his solicitors in Ukcfield, Surrey, whom it is understood the Cardoza family has a long standing relationship with.

Though his domestic address is not known, a set of civil court papers filed by the Cardozas against the developers of the failed Sixfields stadium project in 2013 make reference to Mr Cardoza owning a property in Bordeaux, in the heart of France’s wine region.

On Friday a High Court order made it so David Cardoza and his wife Christina must hand over 50 per cent of the sale of a £1.2 million property in Church Brampton to a solicitor for safekeeping, in the event the council’s lawsuit is successful.

Speaking at the proceedings, judge Simon Barker QC, said: “It is clear efforts have been made to located Anthony Cardoza. It is not suggested that he is trying to avoid being served, it’s that there isn’t a known address for him.”